A couple buddies are getting into riding a bit, and I want to get a mountain bike. I get a corporate discount on new Diamondback mountain bikes, so I am wondering if they are any good. I'm guessing that like any company, they have bottom end stuff and great stuff.

I come from a BMX racing, dirt jumping, motocross racing, and desert riding background, so I am no stranger to 2 wheels in general. I don't need the best bike, but something that I won't regret spending more to get something better. I like a decent deal, but am not scared to spend a good amount to get something legit. Of the ones listed below, is there a happy medium of "this is a great bike for this price?"

How is sizing determined? I am a big dude at 6" 200lbs, but fit. 32" inseam as measured per instructions at ebicycles.com. Their calculator says I should likely get an 18" bike with 175mm cranks. Looks like most of the Diamondbacks are 17" or 19". Which way should I lean (I'm thinking 19"? - will have the wife re-measure me to confirm inseam...I am drinking and my accuracy may be off haha)

Do mountain bikes typically not include pedals? All the pictures show without pedals. Anything else typically that I would have to buy for the bike to complete it?

Okay now to the offerings (full suspension only) and pricing, grouped by model. There are some availability limitations and the stock fluctuates:

Looking at the componentry (limited knowledge), something like the Recoil looks too basic. Sortie looks mid-level (Rock Shox), Sortie 2 and 3 bump it up to Fox Shocks. Mission and Scapegoat look like their top of the line.

First off you need to decide what you want to do on a mountain bike... cross country (single track, mild jumping, lots of climbing and descending), freeriding (bigger hits, jumps, and drops), general fitness riding with a decent amount of time on pavement, etc?

In answer to your question about diamond back, yes they make decent bikes. None of their stuff is particularly cutting edge, but it's decent (diamond back is to the bike industry what supreme, sanger, and MB are to boats), but not top tier. I'd look to get into XT components, and if you can do that for around $2x you're doing well. The Sortie 3 looks like a good value for a freeride-leaning-xc bike. I don't think that bike would hold you back from much.

Thanks for the info, guys. Yeah if I am looking at $2000 to get a new, discounted Diamondback, maybe I am better off getting a lightly used top of the line that someone went hog-wild buying and didn't really use. The only thing there is it opens the selection up so much and each one you look at you have to research the brand/models/etc. which is easy for someone who knows the industry but not for a relative newbie. Can I pay someone to troll the classifieds for me and tell me what to buy?!!?? haha :P Could be smarter too if something comes along that includes some accessories to avoid buying those.

Well, I will keep my eye open on the discounted Diamondback stock and start looking at Craigslist too. If nothing else, it will help me learn a bit.

Does anyone have a quick breakdown of brand/model that I should be targeting in the used category in this general component range (the XT type stuff that Shawn mentioned?)

I had a sortie for a very short time but thought it was a great bike. It pedaled good but had enough suspension to do some all mountain type stuff. The one I had used good components from the shock and fork to the drive train. The only slight issue you might have is if you go to sell it resale might not be great because it isn't a well known brand like Specialized, trek or giant and isn't known as one of the high end mountain bike brands like santa cruz, norco or yeti.

Personally I would much rather have a brand new bike at a discount than an overpriced brand bike used. I also like that the Diamond Back will have the same or very similar components to the other high end more expensive bikes but you are going to get it for a huge discount. Plus you will have something not every other person on the road/hill will have.

If you want mostly a XC bike look at the sortie, if you want something that is more all mountain look at the mission. Here is a good review of the mission pro on from pinkbike.com

Yeah, with a mountain bike I'd go new over used every time. These things get used and abused, and things wear out and break. I'd rather be the one doing the wearing and the breaking that get into a bike halfway through its lifecycle and need to rebuild shocks, replace frame bushings, replace drivetrain components, etc. I wasn't trying to talk you out of the DB ... for the money it looks like a great bike.

I looked at that Mission Pro again and that looks like a sweet bike. It has a really good components. X0 rear derailleur, X9 shifters, Avid X0 brakes and an XT FD all sound good. I also like that it has one of those spring loaded seat posts so you can adjust the height between XC/climbing to a low down hill seat height from the handlebars. That seatpost alone is over $300 I think. Also, every component on the bike seems to be a name brand. It doesn't look like they have gone with any no name cheap crap like a lot of manufacturers do to keep the price down. It also says it has pedals although they don't show them in the pictures. I would start with regular platform pedals and figure out if you really want to do a lot of XC before you go out and buy pedals and road shoes. Since it appears you come from more of a biking back ground where you don't use clipins you may be comfortable starting there. I bet if you took all those components from that diamond back and put them on a yeti, santa cruz, Specialized or Giant you would probably have a 5 grand bike. At $2900 I think that would be a great bike at a great price.

For size I would expect you to fit best on a large. The sortie I had was a large. I am 5'10" with about a 30" inseam and it was a little big for me but rideable.

I just looked up the regular mission vs a specialized enduro comp and they are spec'd out almost identical or very similar. That specialized is listed at $3500 and they probably get close to MSRP on it. You could get the regular mission and have just as good of a bike for almost half the cost of the specialized enduro.

So, 29's typically for XC, 26's for more of a free-ride, big drop, all mountain type of bike? Do I have that right? Realistically I am not gonna be doing huge drops, I am big and hit the ground hard haha. Looks like the plain Sortie is 26" while the Sortie 1, 2, and 3 are 29". The Mission and Mission Pro are 26". I am so indecisive when it comes to research and decision. I am sure either of these would suit me fine.

If the Sortie 3 is a good XC bike with the 29's while still allowing some adventure into free-ride/drops, maybe plhorn's comment makes me lean toward that since it might be an easier ride.

I guess gun to my head, I am between the Mission standard and the Sortie 3. How was the component quality of the Mission vs. Sortie 3? (I just don't know what it all means!)

Yeah I was reading a bit about clipping in vs. flat pedal, and I think I am definitely of the flat pedal variety. When I was racing BMX (not super seriously, mind you), I never got into the clip-ins, then of course dirt jumping is flat pedal as well, so clipping in is not something I am ready to do, maybe later but definitely not to begin with

Thanks for all the great input so far guys. I'll keep an eye on the available stock and see what happens!

I was wondering who would pick up on that. My best friend is Brian Kranz, and is Eli Tomac's mechanic at Team Geico Honda; hence K-Dub's machine in the background!

- Danny

as for that bike, you will be plenty happy with it if you are just getting into MTB riding. It will give you experience to decide if you are a casual mountain biker or want to get more serious/technical about it.

I persoanlly ride a Giant anthem (full squish) and I am very casual about my equipment. All I know is that it has decent components and works well for how I use it. It is a sport that I am very casual about, I dont have the desire to keep up on the latest/greatest technology. You will decide after a while what type of riding you find yourself enjoying. Then if you so choose, buy something more aimed at that purpose. Heck, I rode a Kona Shred as my single track bike for quite a few years. Far from being a good single track bike, but it did the job of making me realize I enjoyed single track more than other disciplines.

Its difficult to pick something about for the casual rider with the different component groups. But dont over-think it, get something, enjoy it and go from there.

a quick little heads up on MTB sizing, if you are "on the bubble" between sizes. I always felt better going one size down on a mountain bike

Gave it a quick test ride in the street this weekend. I also rode Brian's new Trek Slash 7 which I definitely preferred the feel of. I dunno, this Trek Fuel X7 felt small, I don't know what size it is. Maybe it was the relatively narrow bars as compared to the Slash 7. Screwed around doing some wheelies and stuff and the Fuel X7 felt less balanced than the Slash 7. I put the 2 bikes against a flat wall (front tire) and the Fuel X7 is approx. 2" shorter than the Slash 7.

The dude wants $500 which I have no idea if that's good or not. Has clip-ins, so I'd need to buy some platforms, and maybe wider bars would open the bike up a bit.

Depends on your budget and first off you need to decide what you want to do on a mountain bike... cross country (single track, mild jumping, lots of climbing and descending), freeriding (bigger hits, jumps, and drops), general fitness riding with a decent amount of time on pavement. Diamond back they make decent bikes.

What is the recommendation on front-only suspension vs full suspension? Isn't front-only better (more efficient) for less extreme riding?

I picked up a ridged MTB earlier this month. No suspension at all. I do XC type riding and went back and forth on full, front, and none. Demo'd some nice All Mountain or Enduro style full suspension bikes. They are fun and the modern designs climb pretty good. You get used to flipping the rear shock lockout for climbs pretty fast. Having a dropper seat post and FS makes for gravity assisted full riding. I'd really like to try the Zesty AM 527 or 727, but they seem to be taking forever to actually show up in stores.

I found front suspension bikes to be more forgiving with rough downhill stuff and when something pops out of no where vs a ridged bike. They are lighter and climb better which is what I want.

Then I tried a ridged 29'er. Loved the lightweight and ride quality, climbing is fantastic. Like the 29'er wheels with no suspension a lot.

I'd do either 27.5 or 29 in front suspension. 29 for ridged and 27.5 for full suspension if you are doing more of an all mountain bike. Have not tried a modern downhill bike, not my cup of tea.

Personally i have use fuelx7 mountain bike. I always use brand's things mountain bike, mountain bike clothes just brand's. And i would much rather have a brand new bike at a discount than an overpriced brand bike used. I also like that the Diamond Back will have the same or very similar components to the other high end more expensive bikes but you are going to get it for a huge discount. Plus you will have something not every other person on the road/hill will have.

Pulled the trigger on a 2014 DiamondBack Sortie 3.0 29'er. Pumped!! Thanks for the help. I had kinda forgotten about my corporate perk deal code, and it had expired end of 2013. I just logged in today with the new 2014 code and they had stock on a large Sortie 3 29'er so I said SCREW IT, LET'S DO THIS!!!